Governor moves to shrink waiting list for disabled

AP) — Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback says the state will move more quickly than expected to shrink waiting lists for disabled residents who are seeking in-home services.

Brownback announced Wednesday that his administration is immediately releasing funds set aside by lawmakers earlier this year to address the waiting lists. Those funds will total $37 million over the next two years.

Advocates for the disabled had worried that the administration would wait until early next year. Brownback acknowledged that it initially was a possibility because of how the state budget had been written.

He said 650 of the 5,000 disabled Kansans on waiting lists will receive services.

The extra funds come from savings from an overhaul of the state’s Medicaid program, which covers health care for the needy and disabled.